![Starfleet Tactical #198: ASCENSION class (and other!) Dreadnoughts [July 18 2026 @9pm ET] @AresStudios](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/X9qZ-BD-6_o/maxresdefault.jpg)
Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Starfleet Tactical #198: ASCENSION class (and other!) Dreadnoughts [July 18 2026 @9pm ET]
The last two episodes looked at the Belknap class strike cruiser by Todd Guenther (published originally in Starship Design and Ships of the Star Fleet), and a derivative design, the Athabaska class exploration cruiser, as well as some variations. (And since the Athabaska class incorporates a Knox class primary hull (itself expanded into the Miranda (or Avenger) class, we looked at those, too.)
This week, Chris will look at another derivative design, the Ascension class dreadnought. And since the Ascension class is predicated on the old Franz Joseph idea of a dreadnought being a three nacelle design, we'll also looked at Franz Joseph's design, Guenther's TMP-era version of it, and other three nacelle designs.
Be sure to invite your inner 12-year-old -- s/he's going to want to see this.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April via YouTube. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Weber's Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 he's been the co-host (with Pat Doyle) of "Starfleet Tactical" on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK does a lot of things, including producing the show. Want to support her in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
ARES STUDIOS graciously hosts Starfleet Tactical. You can become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: aresstudios.net/
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future. All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.
Starfleet Tactical #198: ASCENSION class (and other!) Dreadnoughts [July 18 2026 @9pm ET]
The last two episodes looked at the Belknap class strike cruiser by Todd Guenther (published originally in Starship Design and Ships of the Star Fleet), and a derivative design, the Athabaska class exploration cruiser, as well as some variations. (And since the Athabaska class incorporates a Knox class primary hull (itself expanded into the Miranda (or Avenger) class, we looked at those, too.)
This week, Chris will look at another derivative design, the Ascension class dreadnought. And since the Ascension class is predicated on the old Franz Joseph idea of a dreadnought being a three nacelle design, we'll also looked at Franz Joseph's design, Guenther's TMP-era version of it, and other three nacelle designs.
Be sure to invite your inner 12-year-old -- s/he's going to want to see this.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April via YouTube. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Weber's Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 he's been the co-host (with Pat Doyle) of "Starfleet Tactical" on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK does a lot of things, including producing the show. Want to support her in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
ARES STUDIOS graciously hosts Starfleet Tactical. You can become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: aresstudios.net/
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future. All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.
![Starfleet Tactical #198: ASCENSION class (and other!) Dreadnoughts [July 18 2026 @9pm ET]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/X9qZ-BD-6_o/mqdefault.jpg "Starfleet Tactical #198: ASCENSION class (and other!) Dreadnoughts [July 18 2026 @9pm ET]
Starfleet Tactical #198: ASCENSION class (and other!) Dreadnoughts [July 18 2026 @9pm ET]
The last two episodes looked at the Belknap class strike cruiser by Todd Guenther (published originally in Starship Design and Ships of the Star Fleet), and a derivative design, the Athabaska class exploration cruiser, as well as some variations. (And since the Athabaska class incorporates a Knox class primary hull (itself expanded into the Miranda (or Avenger) class, we looked at those, too.)
This week, Chris will look at another derivative design, the Ascension class dreadnought. And since the Ascension class is predicated on the old Franz Joseph idea of a dreadnought being a three nacelle design, well also looked at Franz Josephs design, Guenthers TMP-era version of it, and other three nacelle designs.
Be sure to invite your inner 12-year-old s/hes going to want to see this.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April via YouTube. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Webers Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 hes been the co-host (with Pat Doyle) of Starfleet Tactical on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK does a lot of things, including producing the show. Want to support her in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
ARES STUDIOS graciously hosts Starfleet Tactical. You can become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: https://www.aresstudios.net/
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future. All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.")
![Starfleet Tactical #187: The Combat Implications of Point-to-Point Stardrives [28 Feb 2026@9pmET]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XOX0iiHTgbA/mqdefault.jpg "Starfleet Tactical #187: The Combat Implications of Point-to-Point Stardrives [28 Feb 2026@9pmET]
Starfleet Tactical #187: The Combat Implications of Point-to-Point Stardrives [28 Feb 2026@9pmET]
Star Trek famously has an FTL drive with few limits, other than top speed. This is not the only option, however. In this episode, we will look at the military implications of the opposite extreme of star travel the point-to-point systems used by Jerry Pournelle is his CoDominium books, by Michael McCollum in his Antares trilogy, and Steve White (and others) in the Starfire universe.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April via YouTube. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Webers Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 hes been the co-host (with Pat Doyle) of Starfleet Tactical on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK does a lot of things, including producing the show. Want to support her in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
ARES STUDIOS graciously hosts Starfleet Tactical. You can become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: https://www.aresstudios.net/
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future. All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.")
![Starfleet Tactical #178: The Prime Directive, and Q&A (w/ Merle Robinson) [15 Nov 2025@9pm EST]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XzPE_C8ROBU/mqdefault.jpg "Starfleet Tactical #178: The Prime Directive, and Q&A (w/ Merle Robinson) [15 Nov 2025@9pm EST]
Starfleet Tactical #178: The Prime Directive, and Q&A (w/ Merle Robinson) [15 Nov 2025@9pm EST]
Chris was sick all week, so lets talk about something simple, like the Prime Directive. Guest Merle Robinson (and maybe one other!). And, as always, bring your questions about science fiction in general, Star Trek and navy stuff in particular.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
ARES STUDIOS
Become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: https://www.aresstudios.net/
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE
Christopher Weuve is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Webers Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 hes been the co-host (with Pat Doyle, who joins in when he can) of Starfleet Tactical on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK
Want to support our live stream producer in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future.
All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.")
![Starfleet Tactical #181: Frigates & Battleships in the News... (w/Chris Carlson) [3 Jan 2026@9pmET]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/YyBgnxm4Lu8/mqdefault.jpg "Starfleet Tactical #181: Frigates & Battleships in the News... (w/Chris Carlson) [3 Jan 2026@9pmET]
Starfleet Tactical #181: Frigates & Battleships in the News... (w/Chris Carlson) [3 Jan 2026@9pmET]
The current naval news has been ... interesting, with both the cancellation of the Constellation class frigate and the announcement of the new battleship. The former is interesting for all of the normal reasons discussed on this show, and the latter is fascinating from a naming and typ[ing standpoint. (Thats a BATTLESHIP? Really?)
So, who better to talk about these things and add some ...in SPAAACE! flavor than Chris Carlson and Chris Weuve? (We havent talked about naming and typing in a while, so this is as good an excuse as any...)
NOTE: Were specifically staying away from the most of the politics of the subject. It just gets in the way of talking about spaceships.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
ARES STUDIOS
Become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: https://www.aresstudios.net/
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE
Christopher Weuve is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Webers Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 hes been the co-host (with Pat Doyle, who joins in when he can) of Starfleet Tactical on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK
Want to support our live stream producer in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future.
All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.
🎙️ New to streaming or looking to level up? Check out StreamYard and get $10 discount! 😍 https://streamyard.com/pal/d/4604311802740736")
![Starfleet Tactical #158: Odds and Ends and Alec, Too! [25 Jan 2025@9pm EST **NEW TIME**]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/_0OVD6QYcHs/mqdefault.jpg "Starfleet Tactical #158: Odds and Ends and Alec, Too! [25 Jan 2025@9pm EST **NEW TIME**]
Starfleet Tactical #158: Odds and Ends and Alec, Too! [25 Jan 2025@9pm EST **NEW TIME**]
Come join us as we discuss all things Space Combat!
This week, Chris talks a little bit about the implications of WW2 battleships on fighters in Star Trek, and he and Alec talk about, well, almost everything.
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![Starfleet Tactical #175: Questions, Answers, and Babylon 5 (w/Pat Doyle) [27 Sep 2025@9pm EDT]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/_L7w2SI0cLU/mqdefault.jpg "Starfleet Tactical #175: Questions, Answers, and Babylon 5 (w/Pat Doyle) [27 Sep 2025@9pm EDT]
Starfleet Tactical #175: Questions, Answers, and Babylon 5 (w/Pat Doyle) [27 Sep 2025@9pm EDT]
The planets are all in alignment (we think), and Pat Doyle is available to join Chris for a discussion of Babylon 5.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
ARES STUDIOS
Become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: https://www.aresstudios.net/
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE
Christopher Weuve is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Webers Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 hes been the co-host (with Pat Doyle, who joins in when he can) of Starfleet Tactical on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK
Want to support our live stream producer in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future.
All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.")
![Starfleet Tactical #185: How Many Ships to Keep One Forward? [07 Feb 2026@9pmET]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/_pOkxX5SolI/mqdefault.jpg "Starfleet Tactical #185: How Many Ships to Keep One Forward? [07 Feb 2026@9pmET]
Starfleet Tactical #185: How Many Ships to Keep One Forward? [07 Feb 2026@9pmET]
[Yes were doing a show this week once again, the weather is not cooperating!]
Ships do lots of things that arent fighting wars and conducting presence operations they train, they undergo routine maintenance, they have deep overhauls, et cetera. Early in their careers, US Navy force planners early on learn carrier math, the calculations that answer the question how many carriers do we need to own in order to have one carrier deployed?
Lets take a shot at inventing starship match. Well focus on the assumptions relatvant to Starfleet, but well look at other assumptions, too.
STARFLEET TACTICAL is the YouTube show where we talk about the intersection of naval history and science fiction, with some gaming occasionally thrown in for flavor. Primary host Chris Weuve is a naval analyst and wargame designer, whose superpower is that he can talk about Real World(tm) navies and science fiction navies at the same time.
CHRISTOPHER WEUVE is a professional naval analyst and wargame designer. He is a co-founder of the Connections Online wargame conference, held every April via YouTube. Outside the day job, Chris is a co-founder of BuNine (David Webers Honorverse analytic visualization team), and has also consulted with Chuck Gannon, Walter Hunt, Alec Peters, Tom Harlan, John Lumpkin, and others. His work has been featured by Baen Books, the US Naval War College Review, Foreign Policy, and the Discovery Channel. Since May 2020 hes been the co-host (with Pat Doyle) of Starfleet Tactical on the Ares Studio channel on YouTube. His hobbies are naval history, science fiction, and not speaking for his employer.
LYSSA BECK does a lot of things, including producing the show. Want to support her in her other endeavors? Her link tree is: https://linktr.ee/geekgirllyssa
ARES STUDIOS graciously hosts Starfleet Tactical. You can become a Patron of Ares Studios on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/aresstudios
Paypal address: aresstudiosatl@gmail.com
Ares Studios Website: https://www.aresstudios.net/
DISCLAIMERS
Unless otherwise stated, the opinions expressed here are the opinions of the speakers and not their employer, past present, or (probably) future. All images et cetera are the property of their originators. We’re here to add educational value through criticism and commentary.")
